413Heart Music & Arts Festival Returns to Dalton

Johnny Iron will release his new album 'Driving Friend' on Friday at the festival.

DALTON, Mass. — In its third year, the 413Heart Music & Arts Festival is bringing an exciting mix of art to the Berkshires.

Opening the festival on Thursday night, Aug. 16, is a night of dance. Members of the Albany Berkshire Ballet will be performing "Spindown," inspired by Michael Boroniec's sculpture series Spatial Spirals and Verdant Fire Movements I and II. Verdant Fire explores one woman's quest to "shed her skin," discover her true self, and find joy in the new world around her.

Also performing will be Professor Sleepwalker and The Magic Pusher, an intergalactic collusion among sound, within movement. The live performance will be followed by a screening of the acclaimed full-length documentary "Moving Stories," which premiered at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City last winter. The documentary follows six dancers from Battery Dance Company as they travel the world to work with at-risk youth. A Q&A with the director will be held afterward. Prior to the performance, at 6 p.m. Silver Bear Distillery, a small scale distillery located in the Stationery Factory that makes vodka, aquavits and cordials, will be offering a tasting of their unique product. The performance begins at 7 p.m.

Friday evening, Aug. 17, features a live performance by local favorite Johnny Irion with his new album release show, "Driving Friend." Prior to the concert will be the 413Heart Music Awards. Doors open at 7 p.m. and there will be a cash bar.

Activities on Saturday, Aug. 18, include a boutique fine art/crafts show from 1 to 7 p.m. featuring more than a dozen regional artists in mediums including painting, collage, photography, woodworking, furniture making, jewelry and more. During show hours, the Berkshire Museum will showcase a variety of 2D and 3D art and design projects created by participants in its summer camp programs encompassing a wide range of subjects, from pond life to robotics. Works featured will include natural crafts, Lego engineering creations, and even stop-motion animated shorts. The museum Is also offering an interactive activity: Make a Miniature Planet, in conjunction with this summer's exhibit "Josh Simpson: Galactic Landscapes," where festival visitors will be able to create their own miniature planet inspired by Josh Simpson’s work.

From 5 to 7 p.m. there will be a complementarywine reception with vocalist Sherri James Buxton and pianist Bob Shepherd on piano. The evening concludes with a staged reading of a new play "Tamarck House," written by local author/director Michael Dowling. "Tamarack House" is a comedy/drama about five men struggling to stay afloat when they discover the run-down boarding house they call home is suddenly put on the market. Dowling's play "Harvest" was at a sold out reading last summer at the 2017 413Heart Music and Arts Festival at the Stationery Factory.

Sunday, Aug. 19, will include a second day of the art show from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. as well as performances by the Dalton Ballet School at 1 p.m. and Youth Alive Performance Arts t 1:30 p.m. The festival closes with the selection of the winners of the artist filled raffle (tickets sold during the festival.)

All activities during the day Saturday and Sunday are free. Evening performances are ticketed for various prices, an all festival pass is $45. Tickets are available online. The festival is being held at the Stationery Factory at 63 Flansburg Ave.

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